Daily Updated Afghan News Service

Pepe Escobar (via Counter Punch): The Pentagon said Mansour was on Obama’s kill list because he had become “an obstacle to peace and reconciliation.” There’s way more to it, of course. Bets can be made that Mansour’s kill will not reduce Afghanistan’s opium production – which has been steadily on the rise for years now. Mawlawi Hibatullah Akhundzada, Mansour’s former number two, has been designated as the new leader. The fact is, poppy production in Afghanistan remains at the highest levels in provinces that are – in thesis – controlled by Kabul. Click here to read more (external link).